Residents allowed to return home after gas leak forces evacuation

BOISE, Idaho (KBOI) -- Dozens of Boise residents have been allowed back in their homes after they were evacuated early Friday morning due to a gas leak in the area.

An Intermountain Gas spokesman said around 3:15 a.m. a car veered off the road and hit a gas meter at a house on the corner of Cleveland & Palouse. The car broke the meter, causing volatile gas to billow into the air. Boise Police responded to the crash and started evacuating residents within a 400-foot radius of the leak.

Residents in the area said loud bangs on their doors woke them up; it was police trying to rouse them in the dead of night. Many people told KBOI that they were told by officers they had to leave their homes due to a "major gas leak," but didn't receive much more information.

While Intermountain Gas crews worked to repair the damaged meter, officers opened up the gym and bathrooms at Whitney Elementary, where dozens of people were left waiting and hoping it wouldn't last too long.

But around 8:30, the evacuation order was lifted and people slowly went home. As a precaution, police told them not to drive their cars until given an all-clear.

Boise Police are still looking for the driver of the car that hit the meter.